LandSky
by BandicootMan
Summary: .:LJ Challenge:. .:100 RikuSora oneshots:. Ratings vary, but do include G to M.
1. 91 Pain

Pain.

It hurts. It hurts _so much. _Goddamned love. Every time I think I've gotten over him, he turns around and fucks me up al over again. Maleficent told me he had forgotten me. That he only cared about Kairi. So, I forgot him. Or, at least, I tried. God knows I tried. But…no matter how much I tried, how many times I told myself that he was gone from my life, my heart just didn't want to hear it.

And now he's looking down at me, sprawled on the floor, Keyblade scattered across the floor, and I want nothing more than to break down in tears. I want him to hold me. I want him to soothe me, tell me everything's going to turn out alright in the end. A tear finds its way out of me, slowly slithering down my cheek; I want to scream at him. Scream, "_I love you! Listen I **love** you!" _…

But I don't. I let the darkness take me over, the pain in my heart eating me up from inside. I can feel his eyes on me, pleading, begging me to stay. Sparkling with unshed tears. And then nothing. I feel Ansem. I see him, standing on a cruel mockery of our old island. Him, laughing at my beloved, telling lies against everything he knows is true. And now I _am_ screaming. I'm screaming at him to get away while he still can, to please save me. And then nothing again.

I wince in pain, seeing him be hurt. Knowing that some part of me is what's doing it to him. Knowing that if he falls, I'll never forgive myself. If he falls, I don't even know what I'd do. And it hurts. It truly does. Pain blooms in my chest with every passing blow. I try to hide from it. I try to think about that one summer, when things got so hot that we couldn't even get to the water, the sand was so hot. But nothing comes. I search frantically in the darkness, trying desperately to find some scrap of him, of _us. _I try to remember how we shared our first kiss, or the cool uncertainty that followed. Even the tearful apology he tried to give me, and that I refused to accept.

Nothing.

And I think that hurts the most. That feeling that there's nothing left. I've truly gone and fucked everything up. I've given into darkness, and by doing so, I've lost everything I had with him. Every sunset, every afternoon spent lazing about, all are gone. The pain in my very core takes over, and then there's just emptiness. I can't feel anything. No Ansem, no island, nothing.

And there he is again. Pulling me up, saving me from myself. I laugh to myself; I know that he's going to only ever think of me as a close friend, as his confidant. But I'm happy with this, I suppose.

And then his body shakes, and he muffles a sob. The darkness is ending; I can feel it. I clear the dark haze out of my throat. "S-Sora?" He looks up. And there are those beautiful, sea-blue eyes. Those eyes that keep me awake at night, that make me cry out in the heat of passion.

And he sobs again, and now he's wrapping his arms around me, and he's sobbing into my shoulder, his warm tears dampening my shirt. And I wrap my arms around him. He speaks, his voice shaky with tears. "R-Riku…I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't save you!" He nestles back into the crook of my neck. "I'll never leave you again…I love you so much…" And my body stiffens, desperately wanting to hold him closer, more possessively, but I know I can't. Because the memories are flooding back, and I know he doesn't know what he does. We tried it once; It's over.

But I hold him, the pain slowly eroding in my heart.

OWARI


	2. 46 Eyes

Bright blue eyes

Shining and glittering

Reflecting the sea flawlessly

Drawing me closer heedlessly

Innocently shining into the sunset

Sharp blue eyes

Seducing and dangerous

Above me, dipping down to kiss me

Pushing grains of lukewarm sand into my back

Warm and sensuous

Light blue eyes

Brightened by climax

Hot and heavy, half-lidded

Glimmering flawlessly in the warm moonlight

Flesh strewn heedlessly about the sand

Dawning with realization

Scared blue eyes

Pleading and apologizing

Begging for forgiveness

Sadly filling and spilling

Regretful and paining

Empty blue eyes

Sleeping, gentle,

Soft and destructing

Docilely killing me

Pulling me into darkness.


	3. 50 Night

#50 – Night.

"Wake up, Sora. Look!" Riku jostled the brunette awake for the show that was about to begin. "Jeez, you could sleep through anything couldn't you?"

Sora smiled embarrassedly. "Sorry. But, you should know why I'm sleepy." He shot Riku a perverse glance. "_You_ were the one who kept me up till three in the morning last night."

Riku scoffed indignantly. "I didn't hear you complaining when you were screaming 'Yes, yes, Riku! More!' Mmph!" Riku giggled loudly under Sora's hand as the brunette looked around quickly to see if anyone had heard the comment. Sitting back down, he leered at Riku.

"You are _such_ an asshole." Riku shrugged and grabbed the cooler they had brought down to the beach. Riku offered Sora a root beer in apology. Sora simply made a loud "humph" and grabbed the can from his elder's grasp, a smile cracking through. Riku opened his arms, and Sora moved over to him, gently nestling himself in his elder's arms, watching as the first firework lit up the night sky. Sora grabbed Riku's hand slightly when the sound finally caught up to them. Riku simply chuckled and held on a little tighter, as if the boy would slip away like the fireworks, gently drifting away into the night sky.

Sora held a look of wonder on his face, completely absorbed by the lights show. As a child, he had never truly been able to enjoy fireworks, as the climate was such that it only got dark long after his bedtime. But now, here with Riku holding him, it almost made Sora glad to have waited. Everything was perfect. The lights lit up the brisk November night sky, quickly illuminating everything before sinking back into the dark from whence they came. Sora gripped Riku's arm a little more tenderly, confirming that, no, he wouldn't disappear. Not just for Riku's sake, but because the wonder of the night would be that much scarier without him.

"Here comes the finale." Riku whispered into his ear lightly, arousing Sora from his contemplations. And then they came, illuminating the night in wondrous patterns and shapes, patches of flowers covering the canvas of sky before them. It was perfect; a perfect show, and a perfect lover to share it with. Sora listened to Riku's heartbeat as he closed his eyes, and then the applause of people as the show ended, slipping gently into the sleep of night.

Owari.


	4. 40 Stormy Weather

Riku had never met him; well, not _officially_. He'd heard him playing through the open door of the practice room. The first day, it had been a mistake, his knapsack carelessly thrown across a chair as he tried desperately to release some indefinable but over-controlling emotion. As his fingers flew across the neck of his saxophone, he could feel the music take him over; it was no longer his choice whether or not to play. He had to, regardless of his feelings on the matter.

It was then that he heard it: the soft but very clear plunking of a piano in the background. There was nothing remarkable about the player; they simply were playing the piano as they had probably been taught. However, it was _what_ they were playing that impressed Riku. They were playing the _exact same piece_ as Riku. Not that it was that large of a coincidence; Billie Holiday was not an uncommon choice for experienced players. Even so, Riku could tell that whoever it was was putting all emotion behind the piece.

Riku dropped out of their unspoken duet for a moment, both to catch his breath and to hear this pianist continue on their own. In retrospect, that had been his first mistake; that had been the moment he fell in love. The pianist was so good; Riku thought it actually sounded better without him. It was to the effect of listening to Billie Holiday in concert: that is to say, every single high note struck him down, every improvised run made his spine tingle. Not to be shown up, Riku joined back in during the second verse. However, he couldn't get over how good this pianist was. However towards the end, Riku got the feeling of loneliness. Halting his playing, he listened for his accompanist, only to hear the low chatter of a teacher teaching his student.

Riku sighed, gently hanging his saxophone over his chest to get a better look into the next room. Sure enough, there was some scruffy, chestnut-haired boy sitting next to a rather handsome 30-something man. However, there was no ingénue, no wizened music theory major who was going to Julliard for a graduate degree. Riku briefly played with the idea that this young boy _was_ his ingénue, but he quickly squashed this idea, and resolved to go home. Stepping through campus, Riku desperately scoured his brain for anyone who was a jazz pianist that regularly went to the practice rooms. However, Riku could think of no one, as many of his pianist friends had already paid for their own pianos. He shrugged sadly to himself and, dejected, entered his dorm.

"Axel! I'm home!" The red head called out from the kitchen.

"Hey! You're home early!" Riku walked into the kitchen, to find Axel at the stove, stirring some pan-fry concoction.

"Yeah, I got…distracted on my way to the library." Riku pulled a bottle of milk from the refrigerator. "So, why aren't you over at Roxas' dorm? Weren't you guys going to hang out or something?"

Axel shrugged helplessly. "We were _going_ to, but Roxas cancelled. I don't know. He's gotten kind of weird lately. It's like he doesn't want to be my friend anymore." Riku simply smirked to himself and shook his head silently.

"So, what're you going to do now?" Axel shrugged again.

"I honestly don't know. For tonight, I'm going to have dinner, watch a movie, head to bed, and pray that Roxas won't be so crazy in the morning."

Riku smiled. "Well, I don't know about that last part, but I'll help you with those first two."

Oo.oOo.oO

Riku spent the better part of the next day thinking about his mysterious savant. However, the day required he work twice as hard for yesterday's procrastination, so he ended up only arriving at the practice hall at 6:15. As he approached the building, he noticed the brunet boy he had seen the day before exiting the building. Riku picked up his pace to catch up to the adolescent. Lightly touching his shoulder, Riku spoke quickly and excitedly.

"Excuse me; do you know who uses that practice room you were in yesterday before you?" The boy's eyes flashed, frightened, before he shook his head and spoke.

"Sorry, there's no one in there before me except for a kid that comes in during the morning." Riku nodded, disappointed.

"Oh, okay. Thanks." As the boy walked away, Riku tried to think how it was possible that the adolescent couldn't have seen, couldn't have _heard_, that magnificent playing. As he started towards the building, he noticed a folder at his feet. Picking it up, Riku noticed the name on it: "_Sora's folder_" in big silver Sharpie. Rifling through the folder, Riku finally found what he was looking for: "_Stormy Weather_".

Smiling, Riku continued into the music building, knowing that his musical genius _did _exist, and he would find him tomorrow.

Oo.oOo.oO

But no one _was _there. No one sat in the room next to Riku's, tickling the piano. Riku had arrived early to catch Sora before the brunet boy arrived. He tried playing bits and pieces of "Stormy Weather", but there was no piano; it was as if this mysterious pianist had fallen off the face of the earth. As he heard the brunet boy shuffle into the next room, Riku dejectedly practiced scales, truly wishing the ground would just swallow him up for being such an idiot. A voice penetrated his deflating musings:

"Good afternoon, Sora. What do you have to work on today?" Riku's heart jumped and he anxiously awaited the response.

"Actually, I have a problem, Mr. Leonhart. I seem to have lost my folder." Riku frowned. Something was wrong here. This wasn't the thirty-something genius he had been expecting. The voice couldn't have been more than 17. Riku hung his saxophone around his neck and rushed out the door and inconspicuously checked the room next door; there was the brunet! How could this be possible? His ingénue was nothing more than a little twerp!

Riku shook his head; this couldn't be happening. He sighed and spoke to himself. "Whatever. Just give him his folder back and go home." He went to his room and retrieved the piece from his room and returned to the boy's room, only to find the boy completely alone. He knocked on the doorway. "Excuse me? I think I have something of…" His voice trailed off as he saw the boy turned around. His eyes were red with tears, his cheeks clearly still moist. "Hey, are you all right?" The boy rolled his eyes.

"Oh, Jesus. Yeah, I'm fine. I'll just take my music." As he spotted Riku, his eyes widened. "Y-you play the saxophone?" Riku nodded. "Classical, or alternative or--"

"Jazz." The boy nodded, looking as if his eyes were going to pop out of his head. Riku sat down on the bench next to him. "Now, are you going to tell me why you're crying or not?" The boy wiped his eyes.

"It's just…I don't know. It's stupid. I just—I just have some…issues with my piano tutor." Riku placed his hands on the piano, playing scales. The boy held up the folder. "And now I just went and sent him off, and here you come, and you actually _have_ my music, and now I've got no one to show me how to play."

"Well, I've taken some piano courses. I could help you out. What're you working on?" The boy smiled and opened his folder, pulling out a couple pieces of paper.

"Um, actually, I'm working on 'Stormy Weather' right now. But I'm not very good." Riku raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I don't know about that." The boy looked at him, confused. "Uh, never mind. You just play, and I'll try to help you out on the sax." The boy nodded and turned to the piano. As Sora began to play, there was a bit of tripping over notes, but it was about the same as Riku had heard before; improvisation was definitely this kid's forte. As his fingers ran across the last sixteenth-note run, the brunet smiled at Riku.

"Thanks a lot. That actually sounded a lot better than when I'm playing with Squall." Riku nodded and smiled warmly. This kid had a pretty nice smile.

"It's beautiful." Sapphire eyes looked up at him, perplexed. "The piece, I mean. What made you choose it?" The boy blushed.

"Well, actually, you're gonna think this is kind of weird, but I heard another kid playing it in the next room over a couple of months ago. Before then, I had never heard live jazz played. But then, this kid was _so_ good! It curled my toes! It was really cool." Riku smiled.

"I know the feeling."

The kid gestured wildly with his hand. "Right? So, because of that kid, I started playing some jazz. I mean, it's way above my age level, but it's really cool, and I just make up the parts I can't play. Which is what jazz is all about, anyway, right?" Riku nodded.

"Hey, kid--"

"Sora."

"Right. Sora, I know this is kind of abrupt, but I swear I'm not a child molester."

"And I'm not a child. I'm out of high school now." Sora responded stubbornly.

"Right. Fine. You're an adult. Would you like to come over to my dorm? I think I've got some jazz you might like to hear."

"Sure!" The boy agreed, a little over-enthusiastically. "I mean, yeah, that'd be cool."

Oo.oOo.oO

"Is the coast clear?" Axel poked his head in. Riku nodded.

"Yeah, he left a while ago. He's actually a really nice kid." Axel laid out on the loveseat across from Riku.

"Sure, whatever, cradle robber." Riku threw a pillow at the snickering monster.

Riku tried unsuccessfully to be indignant. "Shut _up_!" He looked at Axel oddly. "Hey, where's Roxas? I haven't seen him in a while."

Axel's expression suddenly turned dark. He ran a hand through his hair. "I don't want to talk about it."

Riku raised an eyebrow. "Axel, are you…okay?"

Axel buried his face into his palms. "Argh. Why does he have to be so damned confused? He said he wanted more than friendship with me, then shelled up and wouldn't talk to me this whole week. I wish my life could be simple. Like yours."

Riku scoffed. "Yeah. I'm hanging around with a hormonal high schooler. My life is _definitely_ simple."

Axel scoffed. "You don't care. You know you luuurrrrve him." Another pillow hit the red head square in the forehead.

Oo.oOo.oO

Sora's fingers effortlessly flew across the ivory keys, unknowingly drawing Riku out of his reservations. "Hey, Sora?" Riku spoke into the music. Sora stopped playing and turned towards him.

"Yeah, Riku? What's up?" Riku scrunched up his face and decided that he'd held this in too long.

"Do you…do you like me?"

Sora smiled reassuringly. "Of course I do, Riku! I mean, I took you up as a piano tutor. Even _after_ Mr. Leonhart. What else could show I like you?"

Riku sighed. "No, I mean, as in _like_ like…"

Sora deflated, as if confused for a moment, before smiling again. "Well, I guess I do!"

Riku looked at him, truly dumbfounded. "_What_?" Sora nodded dumbly. "Sora, I don't think you quite get this. Like, as in, do you--"

"Of course I get it." Sora replied stubbornly, before pecking him on the cheek. "I told you before, I'm not a child. You're pretty nice, and you have the same taste in music. What's not to get? I like you, you like me. It's really very simple."

Riku tried to think about this easy-going philosophy, before shrugging.

"Okay, so wanna go on a date tonight?"

Sora smiled before pecking him on the lips.

"I knew you would get it eventually."


	5. 90 Disease

Riku gently held Sora's hand, beads of sweat gently rolling down his creased forehead. As they crossed the steaming parking lot, Sora gripped his hand even harder.

"Riku, I can't do this. I just can't. Just leave me in the car. I can wait." Riku just pulled the brunet into the crook of his neck, a worried look creasing his forehead.

"Come on. We'll be fine. Stop worrying." He said, his voice soothing and unbelieving at the same time. He kissed Sora's forehead, and wrapped an arm around his shoulder as they entered the hospital. As they neared the reception desk, Sora could feel the room getting smaller. He couldn't believe they were here; hadn't life been going so splendidly before? And now…

"We have an appointment with Dr. Highwind. Here's the copay." The receptionist took Riku's money and directed him to the proper room.

"Just sit down on the bed and the doctor will be with you in a moment." Riku smiled and thanked the receptionist.

As they walked into the room, Riku murmured to Sora, "See? It's not so hard. We'll be through this in a minute. And then everything will go back to normal; you'll see." He gently ran a hand down Sora's neck, a trick that always soothed him…among doing other things.

Sora half-moaned, half-murmured, "You're completely unfair…" Riku simply smiled impishly, and allowed his hand to run down the boy's chest.

"And?..." Riku quickly pulled his hand away as the door to the room opened. The doctor looked very professional, and just a mite scruffy, his blonde hair held up by a pair of goggles. He smiled warmly at the doctor. "Hello."

The doctor grinned sympathetically back. "Hi. So! You think you may have caught a sexually transmitted disease. What brought this up?" Riku was about to explain, but Sora began to speak.

"I've been coughing a bunch, and have been having night sweats for a couple weeks. And I was trying to think if I had gotten a cold somewhere, and I realized that we had forgotten a condom a couple weeks ago. And I asked Riku if he had been tested, and he said no."

The doctor nodded. "Alright then. Well, we'll need to draw some blood samples, and the test might take about an hour, so you can wait in the waiting room if you'd like, or we can send the results home."

Sora looked worriedly at Riku. Riku nodded sagely and said, "I think we'd like to stay in the waiting room."

Oo.oOo.oO

Riku slowly led Sora to the waiting room after having blood drawn, feeling vaguely as if he were leading a stroke victim instead of a 21-year old adult. Sitting down next to his lover, Riku picked up a copy of _People_ and began to flip through, before feeling Sora's arm on his leg. The brunet looked towards him, eyes twinkling with unshed tears.

"Riku…" Sora tripped through faltering words, "I'm scared."

Riku grabbed Sora's hand and began to kiss it up his arm before holding it against his chest. "Don't be. No matter what happens, you know I'll still love you. You _know_ that. And you know I won't run off. I'm here for you. Even when you curl up the newspaper to smush a bug before I've read it," Riku's eyes were now twinkling as well now, "Even when you only boil enough tea water for one, I'll _always_ stay with you."

Setting down the magazine, Riku laid Sora's head on his chest and let him sleep as he tried to steady his heart beat, running trembling fingers through his lover's chocolate locks.

Oo.oOo.oO

"Negative!" Riku went fake-ranting around the apartment. "Four rutting hours in a rutting doctor's office, and we're both rutting _negative_!"

Sora could only smile and take Riku's lips in his own. Said lover visibly calmed, and made soft nipping noises into his chin.

"Mmm…on the other hand…I think this calls for a celebration…" Sora giggled.

"And exactly what would _that_ call for?"

Riku smiled impishly as he spoke. "Oh, I don't know…I was thinking we skip dinner and break out the chocolate syrup?"

Sora found it increasingly difficult to speak, as Riku's tongue continued making sinfully delightful intrusions on his sentences. "Well, as long as we actually ingest it, I guess that's fine…" Sora fell into a heap of giggles under his boyfriend's tongue, happy now not only to be alive, but to be where he was, pantless under his salivating sex god.


	6. 50 Minx

51 – Chocolate

"Mmm…" Sora smiled warmly at the confection in his hands. Smooth caramel on the inside, milk chocolate on the outside. He couldn't help but giggle as the golden liquid sugar dripped down his chin in little strands. Not because it tickled the little hairs on his chin, but because of the hungry, desperate looks Riku kept throwing him. "Oh, Caramello…where have you _been _all my life?" Sora giggled as he opened another bar. His friends at the office had given him the chocolate for his birthday, knowing his passion for candy all too well. Of course, none of them quite realized he would torture Riku the way he was.

Speaking of which, Riku kept eyeing him up and down with an intensity he hadn't seen for quite some time. "Sora…please…" Sora sighed sarcastically, still smiling wildly.

"Fine…co'mere." Riku came up to him happily, trying to pry the chocolate out of his hand. "Hey, hey, hey. What exactly do you think you're doing? Bring your mouth down here." Breaking off a portion of the candy bar, Sora popped the sweet into his lover's mouth. "Good, right?"

The silver-haired boy simply smiled. Sora wrapped his arms tenderly around his lover's neck capturing his still-sticky lips in a sweet, passionate kiss. Sora quickly became aware of his lover's tongue poking around, searching for his own. A devious smile sneaking through the tenderness, Sora shoved his tongue in and pulled the chocolate back into his own mouth, quickly swallowing. Giggling deviously at a crestfallen Riku, he managed to speak.

"Wanna try again?"


	7. 74 It's Over

#74 – Angry

Riku is ranting again. The night summer air sweetens around him as he vents, carefully avoiding his hateful words. Sora holds his hand, walking with him and nodding when appropriate. He fades in and out, watching how the blades of grass creeping out of the sidewalk seem almost blue in the moonlight. He catches the tail end of Riku's ravings.

"…Goddamned children! How could they possibly pick the contemptuous fuck over me is just mind-boggling!"

Sora smiles knowingly at the silver-haired boy and nestles further into his arms, making a simple but eloquent point. _'Don't worry.'_

A feather-light kiss connects them, closing the argument for both parties. _'I love you.'_


	8. 88 They Can't Take That Away From Me

o88. – Past

"Thanks again for letting me stay, Jack."

The lumbering skeleton graciously nodded as he led Sora through the building.

"You know you're always welcome in Halloween Town, Sora." The keyblade bearer nodded and smiled warmly at Jack, before stopping abruptly in a doorway.

"Is this…_my_ room?" Jack smiled.

"Do you like it?" Sora looked around; the room was not without a touch of Halloween: The wall paper was a pattern of black and orange. However, it was still beautiful, rustic and cozy. It reminded him of some old records his mom had collected from the 20's. He broke out in a warm grin, despite his current situation.

"It's perfect!" Slinging his bag onto the bed, Sora added, "You guys really outdid yourselves." Jack looked obviously pleased with him, even though Sora had a sneaking suspicion that Christmas Town had helped out a lot. After a moment of silence, Sora spoke again. "I'm sorry, Jack. I'm not feeling very well; do you mind if I just had a little bit of time to myself?"

Jack nodded, clearly embarrassed. "Oh, of course, of course. I'm sorry. Remember, if you need anything, just holler." Sora nodded, turning to examine the bathroom.

Hearing the door close, Sora let out a sigh. It was hurting him to keep playing the hero like this, especially when something like this was gnawing at him inside. Donald had really let him have it. But the duck couldn't understand that it wasn't his fault! He had just stepped into that library, and all his new friends were there, and they were there for one reason.

To help get rid of Riku.

Sora sighed again, leaning gently against the sink. Why hadn't he been able to do it? To fight that shadow of his friend? He knew it wasn't Riku; not really. Riku was just Ansem's puppet…but once the strings were severed…

Sora continued to look around his room, trying desperately to forget about this whole ordeal. He noticed a phonograph on a table in the corner of the room, and immediately dove into the box of old records directly beneath. He had to admit, Jack had a very eclectic taste in music: The Clash, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley. Flipping through the covers, Sora noticed a familiar one. Stuck between Aerosmith and a piece by Tchaikovsky, was an old 45.

"George Gershwin…"

_"Yes, Sora. We're very glad you can read." _

_Sora whacked Riku in the chest. "Shut up! And least I don't have crap taste in music like you!" _

_The silver-haired boy simply smirked. "Uh-huh. And who, may I ask, was listening to Aqua?"_

_"Shut up!"_

_"Just put the record on, and if you don't like it, we can take it off."_

The needle softly scratched the surface of the vinyl, soft white noise coming from the speaker beneath it. As the sound of clarinets began to sound, Sora turned volume and went back to the bathroom to shower. Watching the water pouring out from the showerhead, Sora was pleasantly surprised to find that the singer's voice carried perfectly. Jack had really thought of everything.

_There are many many crazy things  
_

_That will keep me loving you  
_

_And with your permission_

_May I list a few_

_"Your income…" Sora interjected into the song. Riku hit him, a sudden seriousness in his eyes._

_"Just sit and listen."_

Sora pulled his shirt over his head, disrobing quickly so as not to muffle the music. Stepping into the shower, Sora felt the warm of the shower calming, scouring, cleansing. He wasn't guilty; he would've lost if he had tried to kill Riku. He just didn't have the strength. There was too much they had shared; too many memories. The voice crooned on, the singer soft and gentle.

_The way you wear your hat  
_

_The way you sip your tea  
_

_The memory of all that  
_

_No, they can't take that away from me_

_Sora sat on the side of the high school ballroom, watching Kairi sway with some other boy, dressed up as a mobster's trophy wife. It was as if this year's theme was meant for her. Why hadn't he brought a date? Selphie had asked him! He held his face in his palms, the song reminding him of something, something he couldn't quite place. As if from a cheesy romantic movie, a certain platinum blond boy appeared before him, pinstripes down his suit jacket and a grin spread liberally across his face. _

_"Wanna dance, kid?" _

Sora smiled to himself; Riku had been really quite handsome dressed up like some sort of rum-runner. He had worn a fedora, and it had brought, if at all possible, more attention to his face. His eyes, his hair, the way his neck smelled like rosewater, but he swore he never used any.

_The way your smile just beams  
_

_The way you sing off key  
_

_The way you haunt my dreams  
_

_No, they can't take that away from me_

Sora's eyes welled up, a sob escaping his control. Punching the black tile of the shower, Sora let his eyes sting, let the tears flow, briefly drowning out the song. How could he have been such a royal idiot? Riku had been there for him all his life, playing all manner of roles: the friend, the devil's advocate, the guardian, the unrequited lover. Sora sank to the tile floor, letting the hot water mix with his tears, a headache pounding through his head. He would take something for it later, but for now, he deserved it. The singer sang on, gently but unrelentingly reminding him of what he gave up.

_The way you hold your knife  
_

_The way we danced till three  
_

_The way you changed my life  
_

_No they can't take that away from me_

_"Sora? I think it's going to start raining soon. Wanna head back? We have to be ready to go tomorrow?"_

_Sora looked back from the sunset at his friend. "Where are we going?"_

_Riku simply shrugged. "I really don't know. But we're going." _

Sora feebly turned off the water as he regained his composure. One thought kept running through his head: 'I'llsaveyouI'llsaveyouI'llsaveyou…' As he stepped up and out of the shower, feeling less than refreshed, the singer finished their song, reminding Sora why he couldn't give up, why he had to fight Riku, no matter what.

_They can't take that away from me_

Fin.


End file.
